NEW DELHI, INDIA / RankWire.AI / – Prime Minister Narendra Modi highlighted India’s water governance experience as a valuable example for nations across the Global South. On October 6, he shared an article reviewing reforms initially implemented in Gujarat and later expanded through national initiatives. The piece emphasized that dependable water services rely on governance, planning, community involvement, and physical infrastructure. It also explained how India combined public investments with community management and institutional reforms. This focus is particularly relevant as many developing countries confront rising demand, climate pressures, and disparities in access to safe water.
The article examines approximately 25 years of water policy evolution and distills several key lessons from India’s journey. It highlights the importance of stronger institutions, integrated management of water resources and services, community ownership, and early planning for large-scale delivery. The framework described centers on political leadership, public funding, partnerships, and citizen participation. These principles have been incorporated into programs covering drinking water, sanitation, groundwater, and conservation efforts. Narendra Modi stated that the experience demonstrates that lasting water security requires both infrastructure and capable local systems.
India’s rural drinking-water initiative exemplifies this approach. Data from the Jal Jeevan Mission indicates that about 15.91 crore rural households had tap-water connections as of August 10, 2026. When the program started in 2019, approximately 3.23 crore households had such connections. The goal of the mission is to ensure functional household tap connections and reliable drinking-water services across rural India. Its latest phase emphasizes service quality, system maintenance, and performance, reflecting a broader shift from infrastructure counting to ongoing service monitoring.
Jal Jeevan Mission Broadens Its Focus on Service Reliability
Union Cabinet approved Jal Jeevan Mission 2.0 in March 2026, extending the program until December 2028. The updated initiative has an approved budget of ₹8.69 lakh crore, with ₹3.59 lakh crore allocated for central assistance. The government has also instructed states and union territories to develop reform plans addressing implementation, financing, and monitoring. The new framework emphasizes operations and maintenance post-construction and links funding to measurable service delivery, enhanced local management, and sustained access to safe drinking water.
Jal Jeevan Mission 2.0 features Sujalam Bharat, a national digital platform for rural piped-water infrastructure. This system maps infrastructure from water sources to household taps and assigns each village a unique service-area identity. Officials expect it to aid in planning, asset management, and accountability. Local governments and village institutions remain central to day-to-day management, with community groups helping oversee services, report issues, and support maintenance. This approach integrates digital oversight with local responsibility, avoiding the misconception that technology can replace community involvement.
Decentralized Management Supports Broader Water Reforms
The article shared by Modi advocates for managing water resources and services simultaneously. This strategy links infrastructure decisions directly to the long-term availability of water for each system, emphasizing the importance of local institutions in service provision. India’s ongoing water reforms follow this model through village-level management, digital monitoring, and national funding. The approach combines large-scale public programs with local oversight, tying access to broader efforts in groundwater management, sanitation, conservation, and river restoration.
India’s water governance system does not depend on a single scheme. Instead, it integrates household tap connections, groundwater initiatives, sanitation efforts, and conservation measures under a comprehensive policy framework. The article presents these reforms as lessons for other developing countries to consider, rather than a one-size-fits-all solution. India’s recent actions continue to link infrastructure investments with accountability, maintenance, and community involvement. The current program also prioritizes service reliability, making long-term system performance a key indicator of rural water delivery success.